Author Archives

Elizabeth Pelayo is the library media specialist at St. Charles East High School in St. Charles Illinois. She currently writes book reviews for School Library Journal. She is a member of the AASL AAUP Book Selection Committee. Also, she is a member of the nominations committee for the ISLMA Abraham Lincoln Book Award.

• Virtual Summer Reading Challenge

  By Elizabeth Pelayo on 05/20/2020 • ( 0 )

  

  Each year to promote students to read over summer break I create a Summer Reading Challenge board. The summer slide is real, and even with intermediate students they can lose a lot of what they gained as a reader over… Read More ›

• The Virtual Heartbeat Is Your School Library

  By Elizabeth Pelayo on 04/02/2020 • ( 0 )

  

  The relevant school library undertaking on everyone’s mind right now is distance library learning. How do you provide resources, assistance, and information to our students and teachers from afar? The state of our global community has plunged us all into… Read More ›

• Reaching Out for Research Help

  By Elizabeth Pelayo on 03/09/2020 • ( 3 )

  

  Teaching research skills has become a large part of a school librarian’s job description. With the additions of inquiry arches in social studies and science curriculum across the country, our students’ need for research skills has increased dramatically. Inspired by… Read More ›

• Beginnings of a Public Library Partnership

  By Elizabeth Pelayo on 12/18/2019 • ( 0 )

  

  Working together on a common goal is the foundation of any collaboration. Getting young adults excited about reading is an overarching goal school libraries share with public libraries. Combining our efforts to get teens reading is a great way to… Read More ›

• Curation and Collaboration Time at #AASL19

  By Elizabeth Pelayo on 11/08/2019 • ( 0 )

  

  For the past three years it has been my pleasure to be a part of the AASL American University Presses Book Selection Committee. This year I will not be able to attend the 2019 AASL National Conference, but a few… Read More ›

• Frightening Fiction Book Challenge

  By Elizabeth Pelayo on 10/14/2019 • ( 0 )

  

  October is here and our minds turn to Halloween and spooky book choices. Tales of horror, the supernatural, and mysterious happenings are among the most wanted for readers in the fall months. To promote a love of reading and increase… Read More ›

• Self-Care Isn’t Selfish: 5 Tips to Stay Sane during School Start

  By Elizabeth Pelayo on 09/16/2019 • ( 2 )

  

  When the school year begins all the planning and preparations we did over the summer come together. Our energy is high and we feel refreshed as the doors open and we meet our students the first week of school. As… Read More ›

• Transforming Your Island into a Peninsula

  By Elizabeth Pelayo on 08/15/2019 • ( 0 )

  

  As each new school year approaches we are all thinking about what we want to change and improve on and setting new goals for ourselves. For many years I have heard the ideology that our school library positions are an… Read More ›

• 5 Tips to Organize Your Summer Reading

  By Elizabeth Pelayo on 07/16/2019 • ( 0 )

  

  As we close down our school libraries and think ahead to the next school year, all of us are thinking about our summer reading list. What will we bring home to read? What should we read first? How can we… Read More ›

• Adventures in 3D Printing

  By Elizabeth Pelayo on 06/07/2019 • ( 1 )

  

  As the makerspace craze continues to sweep across libraries nationwide, school libraries are trying to come up with ways to engage students in meaningful makerspace work. This year the majority of my time at the close of the semester has… Read More ›